By AFP More by this AuthorKenya on Wednesday launched talks to seal a free trade agreement with the United States which it hopes will transform its economy, despite criticism it will undermine regional integration. Trade Minister Betty Maina said striking the bilateral trade agreement was crucial to "secure trade and investment relations" ahead of the lapse of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) in 2025, which eliminates import tariffs on goods from eligible African nations. Plans to begin talks on the bilateral trade agreement were announced after President Uhuru Kenyatta visited US President Donald Trump in February. "Kenya would be the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to enter a free trade agreement with the United States," Interior Minister Fred Matiang'i said at the launch. McCarter added that a trade agreement with Kenya would serve as a model for further such deals across Africa.

Source: Daily Nation July 08, 2020 17:15 UTC